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The Carnival of Cultures (Karneval der Kulturen) is one of the main annual events and street fairs (Straßenfest) in Berlin, if not the most important one. This street fair started as a small ethnic event and had turned into a festival that attracts scores of visitors from all around the world; it marks the beginning of the summer season in this multicultural city. During the summer there are many festivals, fairs and street parties in Berlin. This has only increased in the past several years, with the growth of the tourism sector in Berlin. Among the most famous festivals are “the Love Parade” (and the reactions to this parade e.g. – “the Hate Parade”), CSD (Christopher Street Day – the Homosexual and Lesbian parade and street fairs) and the world largest beer festival on Karl Marx Allee in Friedrichshain. There are of course many other festivals and fairs - almost every weekend, from May till the end of September, there is at least one street party somewhere in Berlin. The summer festival season begins with the “Carnival of Cultures”, which is the younger sibling of the Noting Hill Carnival in London. The Carnival in Berlin is so successful, that it is almost as big as its British role-model, and inspired several “impersonators”, mainly in Germany (Bielefeld and Hamburg) and also in the neighbouring countries.
Multi Cultural Carnival The Carnival of Cultures (Karneval der Kulturen) in Berlin is one the biggest street fairs in the world and certainly one of the most colourful. In 2006 over 1.5 Million people participated in the Carnival. The Carnival was also broadcasted, live, to millions of viewers in Germany. Most of the participants came to the “Jewel of the Crown” - the parade. The parade went through Kreuzberg, the immigrant’s quarter of Berlin, today and in the past. Many decided to join the parade and to dance with the caravans; other joined the huge street fairs in the nearby streets and the other events and shows that take place in Berlin during the Carnival. Naturally, in 2006, many caravans or dance groups chose football (soccer) as their main theme, given the World Cup, which had taken place in Germany just after the Carnival. 2006 also saw the 10th anniversary of the Carnival. In 1996 the first “Carnival of the Cultures” took place. Since then, it turned into a tradition and the Carnival takes place every year in the Pentecost (German: Pfingsten) Weekend. In Berlin, one of the most secular cities in Germany (with a very low church attendance rate) Pentecost plays no religious role in the Carnival – it is a long weekend of parties and celebrations, in which many members of non-Christian cultures take part. The Carnival celebrates Berlin’s multicultural and immigrant tradition. For one day, the many problems of this city, with the highest percentage of non-Germans in Germany, are forgotten. The immigrants have been contributing a lot to the city’s economy and culture; their turned Berlin into a colourful city and created, what is so special in Berlin, the “Multikulti” – Multicultural, a rarity in Germany (which does not consider itself a melting pot or an immigration destination). Today more than half a million non-Germans, from more than 180 countries, live in Berlin. That means that almost every seventh Berliner is not of German ancestry and that Berlin is the city with highest percentage of immigrants in Germany. The largest immigration group in contemporary Berlin came from Turkey from the 1960s onwards as work migrants. Today there are places in Berlin where the visitor can feel as if he is going in Istanbul: The shops are selling Turkish (or Kurdish) products and the bystanders are talking Turkish and Kurdish to each other. In Berlin today there are more Doener Kebab stands then sausages stands. Berlin has a long history of welcoming immigrants, even before the Turks came. In the seventeenth century the “Great Elector”, Friedrich Wilhelm, invited the oppressed minorities from Catholic Europe to Berlin. Two of the groups actually changed the city – the Huguenots from France and the Jews from Vienna. Later on, in the nineteenth century, Berlin became the centre of immigration for Eastern Europeans, especially those who could not afford. After the Second World War the city was in ruins and the Americans and their allies invested a great deal of money and work in order to repair the damages in West Berlin. The federal government of West Germany joined the allies in reconstructing West Berlin as soon as it could. The federal government gave many subsidies and benefits to those who decided to live in the divided city. For this reason many workers from Italy, Greece and Portugal came to the city as the West German experienced its “Economic Miracle”. Many artists, such as Nick Cave, David Bowie and Iggy Pop also made Berlin their home as the city was still divided, following the tradition of the generation of American and British artists, who came to the centre of culture of the Weimar Republic. At the same time, in the other side of the Wall, East Germany attracted immigrants and “solidarity migrants” from Third World socialistic countries (Vietnam, Cuba and Mozambique) and from all over the Eastern Bloc, composing a Communist version of multiculturalism, different from that in the West. Although the subsidies and benefits are almost completely gone after the fall of the Wall, many immigrants are still coming to Berlin today. The Turkish immigrants were mentioned before, but there are many other groups in Berlin: refugees from the civil war in the former Yugoslavia, Russians, Arabs, Vietnamese, South and North Americans, Chinese, Indians, Israelis, Africans and many immigrants from within the European Union. Since the mid-19th century, Kreuzberg (today part of the district of Friedrichshain -Kreuzberg) became one of the main destinations for immigrants. This is also the district where the Karneval takes place. On the one hand, the many stands and stages are located near the American Memorial Library (Amerikanische Gedankbibiliothek), which was donated in 1948/9 by the Americans, as a symbol for democratic freedom of mind (in contrast to the Soviet policies), and also because of a lack of a central library (which remained in the Eastern sector). This unique library offers, alongside books, CDs and DVDs, also artefacts (sculptures, paintings, etc.). On the other hand, the parade itself begins in one symbolic spot for Berlin, Hermannplatz, today the heart of an migrants’ neighbourhood, which hosts mostly newcomers from Eastern Europe, Islamic countries and Africa; and ends at the train station in Yorckstrasse, a street named after a Prussian general, who gained fame during the Napoleonic Wars. Between these two poles, the parade runs near Bergmannstrasse, once the centre of the 1968 generation, now full of ethnic restaurants, New Age, books and art shops from around the world. A Variety of Events: Parade, Parties, Stages and Stands In 1993 a group of Kreuzbergers established a society to promote tolerance towards the city’s ethnic minorities. The society organised an array of activities, most of them were a little “academic” and dry – until the first Carnival in 1996, which was an immediate success. What started as a modest one-day event, in which members of the different ethnic groups parade, turned into a humongous four-day Carnival. 50,000 people participated in the first Carnival in 1996. In the years following, the number of participants grew rapidly, and in 2005, despite turbulent weather, 1.3 million visitors came to watch the parade. More than 4500 artists (dancers, musicians and actors) took part in the 2005 parade, and 900 other artists participated in the huge street fair. In addition, there were further artists who used the Carnival to demonstrate their abilities; naturally, many of the foreign artists, who arrived to Berlin, a Mecca of cultural creativity, have also participated in the Carnival. It might have begun as an multicultural ethnic Carnival, but even the Karneval der Kulturen cannot avoid one of Berlin’s most important cultural exports: electronic music. Famous and not-so-famous DJs and DJanes appear on the parade trucks, some playing stuff, which is hardly communicative, poppy, music usually associated with Carnival, like the BreakCore creator and musician Aaron Spectre. There are several concurrent events, so even the most enthusiastic visitor will have to make a hard choice. The most important event is of course the parade, which will be on May 27th in 2007 (in other years: usually on Whitsunday). This huge, half-day long parade (12:30 – 21:30) includes hundreds of thousands of participants, from the dancers, to the crowd, which is encouraged to take part, dance with the crews and put on a costume. The parade runs between Hermannplatz and the S-Bahn station of Yorckstr. There are also four stages, plus a circus area in the Blücherplatz area. The street fair in this area includes many ethnic food stands, artefacts from all corners of the world, and the entertainment crews – from Eastern Europe, Africa, Latin America, Asia, the Middle East and much more. A carnival is an event that lets the inner child within us, but those who are also outer children could join the Children’s Carnival, which has a parade and ends with a fair in Goerlitzer Park. Those under 12 are invited to take part, but children of all ages would also love the different offerings in the ‘grownups” Carnival. In addition, some of Berlin’s leading clubs will run parties, where you can dance to all kind of fusion sounds. The 8th International Capoeira Festival will also play part in the commotion. The Karneval der Kulturen is only the beginning of a whole street-fair and party season in Berlin.
Getting There Getting there with a car is an extremely bad idea, but if you must, try to find parking around the Tempelhof Airport and walk from there (mind you, that’s some walking to do!). If you can, DO NOT USE A CAR/TAXI! In addition, if you can choose between a baby carrier/sling and a pram, choose the former. In addition, if you’re going with children, please note that the carnival is very crowded and make every arrangement not to lose them; also inform the older ones what to do if they are lost. Bleucherplatz (stands and stages) , 25-28 May, 2007: U-Bahn Mehringdamm (U6, U7) or U-Bahn Hallesches Tor (U6, U1). Wheelchairs/Prams: Hallesches Tor has a lift. Children’s Carnival: On May 26, 2007.A Parade from Mariannenplatz to Görlitzer Park, and a fair in Görlitzer Park; U-Bahn Görlitzer Bahnhof (U1). Wheelchairs/Prams: Unfortunately no lift in the U-Bahn station, you might want to try busses M29 or 140. The Main Parade: On May 27th, 2007. From Hermannplatz, through the Hasenheide and Gneisenaustrasse, to Yorckstrasse. Stations: U-Bahn Hermannplatz (U7, U8); U-Bahn Südstern (U7); U-Bahn Gneisenaustrasse (U7); U-Bahn Mehringdamm (U6, U7); U/S-Bahn Yorkcstr. (U7, S1, S2, S25). Lifts: Hermannplatz, Hallesches Tor (U1/U6 near Mehringdamm), Kleistpark (U7 near Yorckstr). International Capoeira Festival: On the Carnival days, at the main stages, as well as in Sachsendamm 12 (S1 Schöneberg, Bus 146). Further Information
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